Rudder for weeds/waves combo

Hey All.

I paddle a Nelo 520 in the open lake Ontario. This time of the summer and especially this year we get a lot of vegetation debris floating around. So the net result is the areas of confused changing swell and rebound with crap that wants to wrap around my vertical stock nelo rudder. Not a particularly happy combination.
I am looking into an idea of a better rudder for this situation.
I.e. something that is angled for weeds but not too small as in a small marathon rudder you would use in calm conditions.
520 is a stable and agile boat so I am ok losing some of the handling characteristics of the stock rudder as long as this loss is somewhat reasonable.
So, thoughts on specific rudders?
Something from DK perhaps?

Thank you

Mine came with the weed rudder installed; the standard rudder also was in a blue nylon Nelo bag that contained a small waterproof soft case and a tiny Allen wrench. Did you receive those with your purchase?

Yes. No question. Definitely something from DK. And at least a small weed deflector.
Contact Don directly and he will make a recommendation specifically for you, your boat and your local waters.
All of my skis have custom DK rudders and they are all the better for it. The right rudder can completely transform a ski.
I could bore you with recommendations regarding leading edge angles, chord and span but Don is the expert. Tell him exactly what you are trying to achieve and he will make you the right rudder. You might end up needing more than one rudder to optimally cover all scenarios. I have up to 4 DK rudders for some skis which I swap out depending on conditions and my motivation on the day.

Atlas wrote:

Yes. No question. Definitely something from DK. And at least a small weed deflector.
Contact Don directly and he will make a recommendation specifically for you, your boat and your local waters.
All of my skis have custom DK rudders and they are all the better for it. The right rudder can completely transform a ski.
I could bore you with recommendations regarding leading edge angles, chord and span but Don is the expert. Tell him exactly what you are trying to achieve and he will make you the right rudder. You might end up needing more than one rudder to optimally cover all scenarios. I have up to 4 DK rudders for some skis which I swap out depending on conditions and my motivation on the day.

Yep, got in touch with him and ordered based on his recommendation. Deflector I already have on.

Arcturus wrote:

Mine came with the weed rudder installed; the standard rudder also was in a blue nylon Nelo bag that contained a small waterproof soft case and a tiny Allen wrench. Did you receive those with your purchase?

No second rudder in my bag. A wave deflector, phone case, manual and protective stickers. The Allen key is stored behind the foot plate, in a molded holder.
This is current gen 520. I recall watching an older video with Oscar showing the kit and it contained different items such as a smaller bailer for instance.

I paddle under similar conditions with my 550 and I also have a DK rudder for weedless surfing. It is a compromise, as the turns are far less snappy compared to the stock surf rudder, but it gives enough authority and it sheds off the weeds nicely.

MMaister wrote:

I paddle under similar conditions with my 550 and I also have a DK rudder for weedless surfing. It is a compromise, as the turns are far less snappy compared to the stock surf rudder, but it gives enough authority and it sheds off the weeds nicely.

I think I am ok with that for this particular time of the year since weeds on the rudder almost kill the turning ability and cut the speed in half. Other times the stock rudder is fine usually.